MIAMI - September 20, 2013 - In celebration of the tremendous creative energy of the local artist community, Miami Art Museum will present recent and newly commissioned work by approximately a dozen Miami-based artists in New Work Miami 2013. On view from November 21, 2012 through May 12, 2013, the exhibition will highlight the diverse and innovative practices of Miami’s artists, featuring site-specific installations, sculpture, painting and photography. The exhibition will be among the last presentations in MAM’s current facility, marking the 12-month countdown to the Museum’s reopening in fall 2013 as Pérez Art Museum Miami (PAMM) in a new, Herzog & de Meuron-designed building in Museum Park.

New Work Miami 2013 will be the focus of MAM’s Miami Art Week activities, when Art Basel Miami Beach, Art Miami, Design Miami/ and other art fairs attract an estimated 50,000 members of the international art community to South Florida. The exhibition’s opening celebration will take place during Party on the Plaza, the Museum’s signature Art Basel Miami Beach event on Thursday, December 6, 2012 and will be on view during the MAM Ball, the Museum’s major annual fundraiser, on Saturday, December 8, 2012.

Two artists, Consuelo Castañeda and Emmett Moore, have been invited to create an immersive environment within MAM’s plaza-level gallery that responds formally and conceptually to works by each of the other participants. This experimental approach aims to capture the collaborative spirit that infuses local artistic production, while envisioning a more active role for artists in shaping the conditions under which their work is seen and experienced. In keeping with the organizational method explored in the galleries, the museum has invited an artist collective known as SPRING BREAK to contribute to the development of the exhibition’s accompanying programs, which will include film screenings, discussions, workshops, site-specific projects and other time-based experiences.

“The work coming out of Miami’s flourishing arts scene is fresh and ingenious. It challenges us to develop new ways of engaging with the arts community and our many constituents,” said Miami Art Museum Director Thom Collins. “New Work Miami 2013 is a salute to the incredible growth in Miami’s cultural landscape and represents the Museum’s commitment to supporting the continued growth of the arts in our area. We are delighted to present this exhibition and, as we prepare to move to our new facility, look forward to creating new programming commensurate with Miami’s incredible artistic activity.”

The New Work Miami series is indicative of the strong bond that has formed between the Museum and the city’s artists. It encapsulates MAM’s dedication to supporting the local artistic community, while signifying the vital role that the Museum will continue to play in nurturing the growth of the arts in Miami.

Bhakti Baxter, who presents a series of paintings drawn from images of masks and figurines from around the world; the work explores the ways in which visual conventions and cultural beliefs influence our collective understanding of human history;

Sinisa Kukec, who uses found furniture, resin, pigment, graphite and other materials to create sculptures that display jewel-like effects while teeming with oozing, organic surface textures;

George Sánchez-Calderón and Tom Scicluna, who will create newly-commissioned outdoor works.

Co-organized by MAM Associate Curators René Morales and Diana Nawi, the exhibition explores ideas pertaining to the local built environment; the city of Miami as both a historical object and a psychological state; site-specificity and the nature of display within domestic versus museum contexts; and the dynamic relationship between artistic and curatorial practice.

“With this project, we have asked artists to intervene in the exhibition design and other functions that normally fall within the purview of museum staff, from programming to marketing," said Morales. "In part, this is meant as a nod to the collaborative, artist-driven initiatives that have become so ubiquitous in Miami, constituting one of the defining tendencies of the local art scene."

“As someone who is new to Miami, I’ve been incredibly impressed with the depth and diversity of artistic practice here,” said Nawi. “Organizing this exhibition has been an invaluable opportunity to explore the city’s rich and varied arts scene and to see how the unique context of Miami has shaped artists who live and work here.”

About Miami Art Museum
Miami Art Museum, a modern and contemporary art museum located in downtown Miami, FL is dedicated to collecting and exhibiting international art of the 20th and 21st centuries with an emphasis on the cultures of the Atlantic Rim—the Americas, Europe and Africa—from which the vast majority of Miami residents hail. Miami Art Museum’s educational programming currently reaches more than 30,000 people every year, with the largest art education program outside the Miami-Dade County Public Schools. Miami Art Museum will reopen as Pérez Art Museum Miami in fall of 2013 in downtown Miami’s Museum Park. The new, expanded museum, designed by Herzog & de Meuron, will provide room to showcase growing collections, expanded exhibition space to bring more world-class exhibitions to Miami-Dade County and an educational complex. For more information about Miami Art Museum, visit miamiartmuseum.org or call 305.375.3000.

Related Events

MAM Party on the Plaza celebrating the opening of New Work Miami 2013
Thursday, December 6, 7-11PM
MAM celebrates the opening of New Work Miami 2013, showcasing newly-commissioned works by Miami’s vibrant artistic community, during Party on the Plaza, the Museum’s signature Art Basel Miami Beach/Miami Art Week event. The annual event is hosted by MAM Director Thom Collins and will feature a special musical performance by Spam Allstars and cocktails on the Museum's outdoor plaza. Access with MAM invitation, MAM Contemporaries membership, MAM Contributing ($250) and above membership; Art Basel Miami Beach, Design Miami/ and Art Miami VIP Cards, exhibitor pass, and press pass; Shuttle provided to/from Miami Beach Convention Center. Events@miamiartmuseum.org or 305.375.1704.

Second Saturdays are Free for Families
Every second Saturday, 1-4pm, tours at 2pm
Free to the public
Every second Saturday of the month, drop in to enjoy fun, interactive programs. Families of all ages explore Miami Art Museum together, find inspiration to create works of art, and participate in hands-on activities led by education staff. Presented by MetLife Foundation. Additional support provided by Miami Salon Group, Inc. Education@miamiartmuseum.org or 305.375.4073.

Public Tours
Sundays, 2pm
Museum tours, free with museum admission, are offered Sundays at 2pm. Museum visitors meet in the lobby. Thematic tours are offered periodically to correspond with current exhibitions. Education@miamiartmuseum.org or 305.375.4073.

Group Tours
Docent-led tours in English or Spanish can be scheduled upon request. Docent-led tours are free to student groups. Contact Education@miamiartmuseum.org or 305.375.4073 to schedule a tour or for more information.